BATON ROUGE – The 10th-ranked LSU softball team returns home this weekend, playing host to the LSU Invitational Friday through Sunday. The Tigers welcome in Illinois State, No. 23 McNeese State, Purdue and Florida Atlantic.
All five of LSU’s games this weekend will be streamed online through SEC Network+ and WatchESPN with Lyn Rollins and Yvette Girouard on the call. Live stats will also be available at LSUStats.com.
Tickets
For tickets to this weekend, visit LSUtix.net or call 225-578-2184.
Weekend Schedule (All times Central)
LSU Invitational – Tournament Home Page
LSU vs. Illinois State, March 2, 5 p.m., SECN+
LSU vs. McNeese State, March 2, 7:30 p.m., SECN+
LSU vs. Purdue, March 3, 5 p.m., SECN+
LSU vs. Florida Atlantic, March 3, 7:30 p.m., SECN+
LSU vs. Florida Atlantic, March 4, 12 p.m., SECN+
Series Record Against…
Illinois State: LSU leads 3-0
McNeese State: LSU leads 30-3
Purdue: LSU leads 4-0
Florida Atlantic: LSU leads 4-1
About the Tigers
LSU heads into the LSU Invitational with a 14-2 record after falling in the Tigers’ last two games of the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic last weekend. Amanda Doyle led the squad last week, hitting .533 with three doubles, a home run and a .933 slugging percentage. She leads the team overall with a .456 batting average. The Tigers come into the week with a .294 batting average and have outscored their opponents 84-23 this season.
Scouting the Opposition
Illinois State
The Redbirds come to Baton Rouge with a 5-10 record and are coming off a 1-4 weekend. The Redbirds ended last weekend on a high note, defeating Maryland 8-7. Allison Spence leads the team with a .357 batting average. She has four doubles and two home runs on the year with 13 RBI. Sarah Finck leads the team in the circle with a 3.20 ERA and is 4-4 on the year with a total of 22 strikeouts in 50.1 innings of work.
McNeese State
The Cowgirls, who was an NCAA Tournament contender in 2017, jumped into the Top 25 NFCA Poll this week, coming in at No. 23. They are 14-3 on the season and are currently on a nine-game winning streak. Justyce McClain leads the offense with a .481 average. She own 16 runs scored, a home run and eight RBI. In the circle, Ashley Koncir has the lowest ERA at 2.89 but Alexsandra Flores and Caroline Settle have the most innings at 40.0 and 39.1, respectively, with ERA’s of 3.38 and 3.89.
Purdue
Purdue comes into the weekend with a 2-11 record. Purdue’s two wins have come against South Dakota in five innings and Savannah State. It also picked up an exhibition victory of the Czech Republic. Stephanie Ramsey leads the team with a .400 batting average. She has three doubles, a home run and seven RBI on the season. Kaitlynn Moody is 2-5 in the circle with a team-leading 4.26 ERA. She has 37 strikeouts in 44.1 innings of work.
Florida Atlantic
The Owls come into the weekend with a 9-7 record and are coming off a 3-2 weekend at their home tournament last weekend. Madisyn Palmer leads the team with a .380 batting average. She has three doubles, a home run and 11 RBI on the year. Tatum Buckley leads the team in the circle with a 1.94 ERA and is 5-3 on the year. In 47 innings of work, she has struck out a total of 30 batters.
What’s On Deck
LSU will open up SEC action next weekend, March 9-11, playing host to Auburn. The Tigers will wrap up the nine-game home stand on March 13 with a midweek matchup with Western Kentucky.
For all of the latest news and information on Tiger softball, visit www.lsusports.net/softball. Fans can also follow the program on its social media outlets at www.Facebook.com/lsusoftball along with @lsusoftball and @BethTorina on Twitter and @lsusoftball on Instagram.